Financial Aid       

West Chester University

25 University Avenue, Suite #030
West Chester, PA 19383
Phone: (610) 436-2627
Fax: (610) 436-2574


Loans Watch Video

Student loans are serious financial and legal obligations - they must be repaid. To apply for a Federal Student Loan you must complete the FAFSA by the March 1st deadline. Federal loan programs are regulated by the U.S. Department of Education and are subject to program specific requirements, including maintaining satisfactory academic progress. Learn your borrower rights and responsibilities - borrowing for college is a serious investment.

FEDERAL DIRECT STUDENT LOANS- TO APPLY

File the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) by the March 1st priority deadline.   

HOW MUCH CAN I BORROW?

First-Time Borrowers:

  

    1. Accept your Federal Direct loan on-line at wcupa.edu/financial aid, and be sure to accept

        EACH loan individually.

    2. Go to www.studentloans.gov to do both subsidized/unsubsidized entrance counseling

        AND complete your Master Promissory Note (MPN) using your student FAFSA PIN number.

Returning Borrowers:

    

  1. Accept your Federal Direct loan on-line at wcupa.edu/financial aid, and be sure to accept 

         EACH loan individually.

Federal Perkins Student Loan

     

Your FAFSA will be screened for eligibility as part of WCU's automated mass packaging process. Students with a -0- EFC, from the submission of their FAFSA, receive first consideration for these funds. There are always more eligible students than there are funds to award. Should monies become available, again students with a -0- EFC will be given first consideration. If funds are available students with high need can then be considered. The Cost of Attendance (COA) minus the Expected Family Contribution (EFC) is used to determine the need of potential recipients.

 

If YOU are offered a Federal Perkins Student Loan please take action on your loan as soon as possible. Please ACCEPT the loan to secure these dollars in your package or DECLINE the loan if you do not need assistance. Take action by logging in to myWCU at the West Chester University Web site. You are encouraged to take action within 30 days of being offered the award.

 

First-time borrowers-

Once you accept the loan your file will be transmitted to Campus Partners. Campus Partners will service your loan and provide you access to iPromise. You will receive communication regarding your access to iPromise,. Follow the instructions. Login into iPromise and complete the following steps as soon as possible to receive these funds.

  1. Complete an Entrance Counseling Test,
  2. Complete the Loan Interview. Complete all of the questions with an asterisk*. Do Not duplicate your references. Doing so will delay the release of your award.
  3. Review and Accept your personalized TLID
  4. Sign your Master Promissory Note-MPN. You may sign the MPN in iPromise using your federal PIN, the same PIN you used to sign your FAFSA. If you do not remember your PIN go the PIN Site  and retrieve the code. Sign the MPN and print a copy for your records. You may also sign the MPN in the financial aid office, provided you have completed steps 1-3. Some returning borrowers may be required to sign a NEW MPN.

Check the status of your loan via myWCU. You must successfully complete all of the requirements.Updates normally take 48 business hours. Please read the Federal Perkins Student Loans Fact Sheet.   

Federal Nursing Student Loan

The Federal Nursing Student Loan program is available to students who meet the eligibility requirements  to receive Federal Financial aid, have been accepted into the Nursing Program at WCU and demonstrate need for assistance. West Chester University is the lender.

Awards are made each year as part of the packaging process, priority is given as follows.

1st -  Currently enrolled, eligible nursing loan receipients are given first consideration

2nd - New Students pursuing their 1st undergraduate degree

3rd - Students working on a 2nd degree.

The amount of Federal Nursing Student Loan offered to a student depends on the amount of funding available at the time of packaging. The Federal Nursing Student Loan has a fixed interest rate of 5 percent.

 

If YOU are offered a Federal Nursing Student Loan please take action on your loan as soon as possible by logging in to myWCU at the West Chester University Web site.

First-time borrowers must:

1. Please contact the financial aid office to schedule an in person Entrance Counseling Interview.

2. Complete and submit a Acknowledgement/Reference Form to the Financial Aid Office.

3. Complete and sign a Master Promissory Note MPN in person, in the financial aid office.

Please read the Federal Nursing Student Loan Fact Sheet. You may download and print for your convenience.     

Parent Loan for Undergraduate Students (PLUS)

PLUS funds are available for parents who qualify to bridge the gap between the Cost of Attendance (COA) and other financial aid, including loans.

All PLUS applications are subject to a credit check. Credit checks have only a 60 - day window before they expire,so, if applying for PLUS funding,

the best time to apply for attendance at West Chester University is around June 1st each year.

To Apply:

  1. Go to www.studentloans.gov
  2. Apply for Parent PLUS on-line
  3. Complete and e-sign a Master Promissory Note (MPN) if applying for the first time

Graduate PLUS

Graduate PLUS funds are available to graduate students who are enrolled in degree programs and need funding to bridge the gap between the

Cost of Attendance (COA) and Federal Direct student loans. All graduate PLUS applications are subject to a credit check. Credit checks have

only a 60-day window before they expire, so if applying for Graduate PLUS funding, the best time to apply is around June 1st of each year.

To Apply:

  1. Go to www.studentloans.gov
  2. Apply for Graduate PLUS on-line
  3. Complete and e-sign a Master Promissory Note (MPN) if applying for the first time

 

Private Education Loans  

Private Loans are education loans that have, depending on the lender, a variety of terms and rates. Students with sufficient income and credit may be borrowers on these loans; parents may be borrowers or co-signers if their students do not meet the lender's income and/or credit criteria.

Students and parents should carefully consider interest rates and terms ("comparison shop").